difficulties of water and space on the Peninsula and would,
perhaps, enable me to effect a surprise with the fresh divisions.

"I believe I could advance with half the loss of life that is now being
reckoned upon, if I had a liberal supply of gun ammunition, especially
of high explosive."

Only bitterest experience has forced me to insert the two stipulations
which should go without saving, (1) that my force is kept up to
strength, (2) that I have a decent allowance of gun ammunition,
especially of high explosives.

Will Lord K. meet us half way, I wonder? He is the idol of England, and
take him all in all, the biggest figure in the world. He believes, he
has an instinct, that here is the heel of the German Colossus, otherwise
immune to our arrows. Let him but put his foot down, and who dare say
him nay?

The most vital of my demands is that my formations should be kept full.
An extra 50,000 men in the shape of a new army corps is one thing. An
extra 50,000 men to feed war-trained units already in the field is
another, and very different, and very much better thing. The value of
keeping the veteran corps up to strength and the value of the same
number of rifles organized into raw battalions commanded by
inexperienced leaders is as the value of the sun to the moon. But K. and
I have never seen eye to eye here, and never will. The spirit of man is
like a precious stone: the greater it is the more room in it for a flaw.
Who in the world but K. would have swept up all the odds and ends of
detachments from about twenty different regiments of mine sent from
Pretoria to Elandsfontein to bring up remounts and clothing to their
units; who but K. could have conceived the idea of forming them into a
new corps and expecting them to fight as well as ever--instead of
legging it like the wind as they did at the first whistle of a bullet?
On the other hand, who but K., at that time, could have run the war at
all?

The 29th Division have managed to snatch another 150 yards from the
enemy, greatly strengthening the bluff upon which the Gurkhas dug
themselves in.

_18th May, 1915. H.M.T. "Arcadian."_ Villiers Stuart, Birdie's Staff
Officer, has been killed on Anzac by a shell. The submarine E.14 sailed
into harbour after a series of hair-raising adventures in the Sea of
Marmora. She is none the worse, bar the loss of one periscope from a
Turkish lucky shot. Her Commander, Boyle, comes only after Nasmith as a
pet of Roger Keyes! Sh